Tone wood

[orpheo]

Wood species . . . meh. I've played identical electric guitars made out of the same wood species and found stark differences.

That surely happens, but have you ever tried for example, 3 guitars, with the same pickups, with the necks and fretboards cut from the same board and three different bodies? That gives you a great basis for comparison.

I have done that.

I have also tried three fretboard materials, for example, on the same Aristides guitar. Since those are extremely consistent, any little change is clearly audible. Then it becomes clear, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that different materials make up for different tonal spectrums.

A dozen guitars is anekdotal: hundreds of guitars, that's statistic.

 

[GuitarStv]

That surely happens, but have you ever tried for example, 3 guitars, with the same pickups, with the necks and fretboards cut from the same board and three different bodies? That gives you a great basis for comparison.

I have done that.

I have also tried three fretboard materials, for example, on the same Aristides guitar. Since those are extremely consistent, any little change is clearly audible. Then it becomes clear, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that different materials make up for different tonal spectrums.

A dozen guitars is anekdotal: hundreds of guitars, that's statistic.

My point was simply that there's significant variance within a single species of wood. That's why making generalizations about wood is fraught with peril. I've played mahogany guitars that had little midrange and lots of highs and dark sounding ash guitars with maple neck/fretboard. You might be able to say that on average mahogany is a middy sounding wood - but that knowledge is largely useless. People don't play guitars on average . . . they play a single unique instrument. (Then with an electric guitar all of this takes a back seat to the sound produced by the pickups anyway.)

The way the one guitar in your hand sounds is really the only factor that's important. Species of wood is an extremely inaccurate way of guessing how a finished guitar will sound.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

And don't forget, acoustic guitar improves with age. An acoustic from 30 years ago made of all laminated plywood outperform any new all-solid wood Martin, Taylor, Guild, etc.

I've built more than 240 acoustics of plywood and cardboard, I know what I am talking about.

A few guitars are anecdotal. Two hundreds are statistics.

 

[ItsaBass]

This place is ridiculous.

 

[Progbusters]

i have alot of guitars and amps. if it this is true with you you'll see that wood does make a difference.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[Masta' C]

I'm all about tone wood...I get it every time David Gilmour plays :headbang:

 

[Gtrjunior]

And don't forget, acoustic guitar improves with age. An acoustic from 30 years ago made of all laminated plywood outperform any new all-solid wood Martin, Taylor, Guild, etc.

I've built more than 240 acoustics of plywood and cardboard, I know what I am talking about.

A few guitars are anecdotal. Two hundreds are statistics.

I’ll put my 2015 Taylor up against ANY 30
y/o plywood and cardboard guitar.

 

[solspirit]

I’ll put my 2015 Taylor up against ANY 30
y/o plywood and cardboard guitar.

Masonite? Lol

 

[Gtrjunior]

Masonite? Lol

 

[solspirit]

That's beautiful, I've got 2005 applause that's one of the sweetest I've heard. I think it's mostly a myth that acoustic guitars improve with age.

 

[Demanic]

I think that one of the factors of an acoustic instrument improving with age involves how much it is played. Just like a speaker, playing it breaks it in. If it just sits unused, I don't think that aging will have the same effect.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[solspirit]

I think it also has a lot to with climate

 

[Demanic]

No doubt, but acoustics in a dry climate should be stored with some sort of humidifier or bad things can happen. Same thing I suppose, if one is in the tropics, but for the opposite reason.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[solspirit]

Where I lived in CR had a very hot and arid dry season. My guitar sounded good for about 2 months and the rest of the year it seemed very muted... But we got an avg of 102"/8' of rain annually.

 

[Demanic]

When I lived in Boston I had to use a humidifier in the sound hole of my classical to keep it from shrinking and cracking in the winter. The rest of the year it was fine. I've seen bridges pull up in Arizona on guitars that weren't properly cared for.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[ehdwuld]

When I lived in Boston I had to use a humidifier in the sound hole of my classical to keep it from shrinking and cracking in the winter. The rest of the year it was fine. I've seen bridges pull up in Arizona on guitars that weren't properly cared for.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

When I lived in Arizona
my hand made mahogany table warped and bowed
When I returned to Alabama it all went back to flat

My Martin's neck bowed a bit
but returned when I came home

 

[solspirit]

When I lived in Boston I had to use a humidifier in the sound hole of my classical to keep it from shrinking and cracking in the winter. The rest of the year it was fine. I've seen bridges pull up in Arizona on guitars that weren't properly cared for.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

I used to hate the northeast sometimes. Hot humid summers and cold dry winters.

 

[solspirit]

I keep the temp between 68- 69 and the humidity between 40- 55 year round. We have a few days where the humidity rises above or dips below... But not many.

Good insulation is important. Lol

 

[Demanic]

I used to hate the northeast sometimes. Hot humid summers and cold dry winters.

Why else do you think that I relocated to AZ?

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk